Duty of a Queen
by Phoebe Murdivine
Summary: Every Kingdom has their unique way to choose the next Queen. When Arthur Kirkland takes the throne, he has to prove himself to everyone around him - mistakes are made, and Arthur has to learn what it means to be a Queen. Cardverse AU, part of the "Four Kingdoms" series. Hints of future UsUk, and some impled SuFin.


**Disclaimer:** I do not own Hetalia. I'm not taking credit for the Cardverse AU either. The only thing I did was to play around with this popular AU and added my own headcanons to it.

 **Pairings:** This first story only have implied future UsUk (only some attraction is there but it doesn't go anywhere... at least in this story) and some implied SuFin (they are a thing, we just don't see them act couple-y).

* * *

Everyone who says that they understand how the Kings are chosen, they lie. Mostly, it's hereditary, but there are so many loopholes, so many exceptions, that people commonly said that basically anyone could be King after looking through the laws deep enough.  
Not like many people wanted to be. Being in charge of the law, being the main judge, being the head of the legal system was a hard and heavy job.

Jacks are elected by the people. After all, they are their diplomats – not only they have to work with the economy, but in wartimes, it's their job to work towards peace. They represent their Kingdoms in other Kingdoms.  
They are elected, and they stay in their jobs until the people grow displeased with them. Their power comes from the people, and they can take it away.

Aces are the head of the military, the general, the one everyone answers to. They have to earn their rank, they can only be the best, and stay in power until someone better comes along.  
In peace, Aces are in charge of the police force too, keeping peace inside the country.

The way these three are chosen are well-known for everyone.  
The Queens, though...

They are the clerical power. They are the head of religion. The main priest or priestess. They are responsible for education.  
And every Kingdom have their secret of how they are chosen, because every Kingdom have their own religion and rituals to choose their Queens.

The Spade Kingdom was restless since their beloved Queen stepped back. Or at least, decided to step back. The law stated that she couldn't do that, unless she has a replacement.  
It had been going on for a year now, and there had been no result. No new Queen.  
There were whispers, and everyone was looking at the moon at night, waiting for the next new moon.  
One more new moon. One more ritual. One more chance.

And if they fail again, one more month of waiting.

„Are you gonna try, Arthur?"  
Arthur looked at his younger brother, who was sitting on his bed.  
„Get off your shoes from my blankets."  
„You didn't reply!"  
„Off. With. Your. Shoes."

The Kirkland brothers became orphans when Peter was just a baby, so they were raised by the priests and priestesses of the Kingdom.  
And since the Queen resigned, Peter had been bugging Arthur to volunteer for the rituals.  
„Do you think I want to be a Queen?"  
„Seriously, Arthur, you should try out. What do you have to lose? Either you'll be a Queen, or not. At this point everyone is desperate to find one. They'd even take you."  
„...what's that supposed to mean?!" Arthur's eyebrows ran up, and just looked at Peter's grinning face. „I'd be an amazing Queen, thank you very much."  
„Oh yeah?! Prove it, jerk."

One really should not apply to be a Queen because his little brother dared him to, but there he was.

The magic and the religion of the Spade Kingdom was all based on water. The Kingdom was full of rivers and lakes, and they has a long sea coast. It was only natural.  
Arthur put up his ceremonial blue robes, walking to the waiting room.  
There were so many people, young and old. Ones who came the first time, like Arthur, and others, who try again and again.  
„Yooo, look at that, Arthur." Carlos looked up at him. „You think you have a shot?"  
Arthur shrugged, sitting down to a chair.  
„Whatever. A few more moons, and they will have to look outside of the church."  
„That didn't happen since... ever."  
„Well, there might be a first time for everything... how many times you tried for now?"  
The other man grinned, throwing his dreads back.  
„I tried every moon. Who knows, maybe I am ready this time."  
„You would criticize everything the King does."  
„So would you."  
They both laughed, and just continued waiting.

„Good evening Arthur."  
„Queen Guinevere."  
Arthur bowed down to his knees as usual.  
„Rise up, Arthur."  
The altar was in the middle of a pool of water, and the old Queen was standing there. She wasn't wearing her royal gown what she was often wearing in public. She was wearing the robes of the high priestess, grey hair let down, with blue pearls woven into it.  
She was a Queen, through and through.  
Whythe fuck was Arthur here?  
„State your full name."  
„Arthur Kirkland."  
„Were you born in the Spade Kingdom to your best knowledge?"  
„Yes."  
„Do you understand what this ritual is for?"  
„To find the next Queen."  
„Do you understand what happens if you are found suitable to the task?"  
Arthur was quiet for a second, and Guinevere just waited.  
„I... would become the Queen, your majesty."  
„You do understand, that if you are chosen, there will be no way back?"  
„I understand."  
„Do you still wish to partake in the ritual?"  
„Yes, my Queen."  
The Queen nodded.  
„Then step forward, Arthur Kirkland."

Arthur took off his cloak, and he stepped in the water in the rest of his ceremonial clothes.  
It was hard to walk through the water, towards the Queen, especially as in the end, it was waist-high.  
„You can turn back every time you want, Arthur."  
„I know, my Queen."  
He reached the altar, but did not step up to the podium surrounding it.  
Queen Guinevere took a dagger into her hand, a dagger full of blue stones.  
„Give me your hand, Arthur Kirkland."  
The Queen got Arthur's hand to hers, and just pulled off one of the gloves.  
„We all have water within ourselves. And this water inside us can tell our worth."  
The cut isn't deep, and doesn't hurt all that much, the Queen certainly did it a lot of times by now. Arthur just watches how his blood drips into a small cup.  
„May the water choose you, if you are the best for our Kingdom."  
Arthur bowed his head again.  
„May it be."

„So? So so so? How was it?"  
Arthur smiled, as he put up his cloak to his wardrobe.  
„You know I can't talk about it, Peter."  
Of course Peter was pouting.  
Arthur just sighed, walked over and ruffled the boy's hair.  
„Hey!"  
„Go to your room, Peter. I have to be alone tonight. You know that too."

No one sleeps the night of the new moon.  
Everyone knows that if there's a Queen chosen, there will be a knock on everyone's door who volunteered that night.  
Everyone knows that the candidates all disappear, to keep the Queen's identity hidden, until it's all revealed in the coronation. So no one can guess until the big day.  
It was kind of am overkill, maybe. But this is how it was.

And at one point during the night there was a knock on Arthur's door.

He expected to see the priests telling him it's time to go.  
He didn't expect to see Queen Guinevere.

Arthur blinked a few times, before bowing.  
„My Queen."  
Queen Guinevere just smiled.  
„Not for long, Arthur."  
And at that moment, Arthur Kirkland knew.

Arthur had been in the palace before – last time when the Ace of Spades, Yong-Soo was crowned, he was present at the ceremony.  
And now, with Arthur being...  
Now the last of the previous ruling four will finally be able to step down.

He stepped out of the carriage, face covered with the cloak, as the guards escorted him.  
He knew there are probably whispers already. He knew there are probably people hiding in the bushes, or hell, even under the water of the small ponds to try to catch a glimpse of the new Queen before anyone else.  
The new Queen.  
Soon-to-be Queen Arthur.  
Arthur exhaled.  
Holy hell, there was no way back.

Well. Unless the other three vetoed him, of course.

The servants were nowhere to be seen as well.  
By the time Arthur reached the door of the throne room, only Queen Guinevere stood by his side.  
„They are waiting for you."  
Arthur swallowed, eyeing the details of the door.  
He put his hand over the mark that showed the two symbols.  
The Spade. And the letter Q.  
„What if they veto me?" He said in a low voice.  
„They have one week to do so." Guinevere nodded. „Do not worry, even if they do. Then you will return to your old life, like nothing changed. Go, now. You four will have to manage a Kingdom together."  
That didn't exactly calm Arthur's nerves.

When he entered the door, the first thing he saw was how grand it was. Usually when he was in there, it was crowded, full of people and sounds.  
Now it was mostly empty, and quiet – the kind of quiet where the conversation just died.  
The next thing he saw was a pair of bright blue eyes and glasses, and there was someone shaking his hand enthusiastically.  
„Hello, hello! It's so good to finally meet you! Gwinny was getting really tired by this point. We were starting to get worried no one will be found good for the role. But you are now finally here! I'm Alfred, by the way. Alfred F. Jones. Your King. Or... whatever. The King."  
„He probably already knew that, Alfred. And stop shaking his arm, you are gonna dislocate it."  
Wang Yao, the Jack also walked down the stairs, stepping closer, looking at Arthur with barely contained amusement.  
„Is there... something on my face..?"  
„Yooo, you look like you had never seen Alfred before." Yong-Soo basically jumped down the stairs, curiousity written on his face.

„What is your name, Queenling?"  
„...you called me what...?"  
The Jack just smiled a little.  
„We can still veto you. So you are not a Queen yet. So? You know all our names, probably."  
Arthur pursed his lips. Oh, he already saw this was gonna be peachy.  
„I am Arthur Kirkland."  
Alfred put his hands together cheerfully.  
„Awesome. Queen Arthur."  
„Not. Yet." Yao interrupted again, and Arthur started to get annoyed.  
Did he really have to work together with these idiots?

Yong-Soo grabbed his hand, and just dragged him towards the thrones.  
„Hey, hey, hey, try out your chair!"  
„That's a throne, Yong-Soo, and he's not a Queen yet."  
„Don't be a spoilsport, Yao."  
Arthur sat down in the throne, and looked at the other three.  
Yong-Soo was looking him with a grin, Yao looked uninterested, and Alfred was rocking himself on his heels.  
He was surrounded by idiots.  
„Don't get too used to it. We can still veto you."

He was officially fed up with Jack Yao at this point.

„I got it the first five times you said." Arthur said in a cold voice, looking Yao straight in the eye. „And please do so if you feel like it. But know this – I'd be a _damn good Queen_."  
Yong-Soo's grin grew even wider as he turned around to the King and the Jack.  
„I like him. I vote yes to him."

One down. Two to go.

„Look, don't worry."  
Arthur hated being closed in, and he was constantly hidden away from servants, and it started to grate on his nerves.  
The King didn't help matters.  
He was in the library this time, taking in the vast scope of it. They had a lot of books when he was raised in the monastery too, but this? This was a whole knew level.  
„Yao won't veto you. Not like he has anything against you. He just wants to keep you on your toe."  
Arthur snorted, and just slipped a little tea.  
All the books, and good tea.  
Damn, he really wanted to be Queen now.  
Just for the books and the tea. The enthusiastic Ace, the idiotic King and the bitter Jack would be manageable if he had these.  
„I'm just saying. Yao isn't that bad... he didn't get elected for nothing, you know."  
„Well, I didn't vote for him."  
Alfred grinned.  
„Well, neither did I. But he isn't that bad now, is he?"  
„Can't we veto him out if I become Queen?"  
Alfred's laughter echoed in the library, and even Arthur smiled a little.  
„Dude, I like you."  
„Would you two mind telling that to my face, though?" Yao's voice interrupted them.  
Both of them turned around, seeing the Jack walk in.  
Arthur put down his teacup.  
„I didn't vote for you."  
„Neither did I." Alfred chimed in, rocking on his heels.  
Yao tilted his head a little, looking at them with an unreadable expression.  
„And would you vote for me now?"  
Alfred glanced at Arthur, who just shrugged.  
„If you had asked me two days ago, I would have said yes, because you seem competent since you are the Jack."  
„And what would you say now?"  
„That you are an asshole, and I'm not sure how good of a diplomat you are."

To everyone's surprise, Yao laughed.  
„Well, at least you are honest."  
He turned away, and started to walk out.  
„You have my approval, by the way. I just hope you will use this honesty to the other two as well."  
Arthur looked after Yao dumbfounded, even after the library door closed behind him.  
„Dude, I don't get that guy."  
„Nobody does." Alfred shrugged, and then grinned. „Dude! You have three approvals!"  
„I have Yong-Soo's and Yao's."  
„Dude. You always had mine."

Arthur really didn't want to blush.

The coronation ceremony was spectacular.  
Many people arrived to see the new Queen, and even the Jacks from the other three Kingdoms came after they got the invites from Yao, obviously.  
Usually it was one of the other Royals, or maybe a higher ranking priest or priestess who did the crownings.  
Now, they could literally have the previous Queen give over the mantle for the next one.

„Please, all rise for... Queen Arthur Kirkland!"  
He had taken the place between Alfred and Yao, taken the second throne in the room.  
The crowd was applauding him, and Arthur was pretty sure he had seen Peter grin like he never did before.  
He was about to get some benefits, after all, being the brother of a royal. Brother to the Queen. Maybe when he grows up he'll get a rank too.  
They just moved up as far as possible in the social ladder.

Obviously, this is when it all went wrong.

He didn't show up in a thunder.  
He didn't bring a shadow that clouded over the sun.  
He showed up as a whisper in Arthur's ear.  
„What a nice party."

The Joker was tall, with unruly white hair and red eyes, and an unnatural grin on his face.  
And he was just there, sitting on the arm of Arthur's throne.  
Arthur jumped. Someone in the crowd screamed.  
Everyone went quiet.  
„Oh, my. No need to be this dramatic." Gilbert waved a little. „I just came here to announce upcoming doom, after all."  
Someone probably fainted. The guards stood on alert, but Yong-Soo raised an arm, and motioned them to stop.

You don't attack a Joker.  
Ever.

The Joker jumped off the throne, and walked a few steps forward, and then spun around so he could face the royals again.  
„My rulers are most displeased that we didn't get an invitation. So yeah. Congratulations to your short-lived Queendom, Queen Arthur" the Joker did a mock-bow. „...because there won't be a Kingdom for you to rule much longer."  
„Wait!" Arthur rose from his throne. „Certainly it is an overrea..."  
„No it's not." The Joker interrupted him, and Arthur pursed his lips.  
„You are all troublemakers. It was most likely an oversight. You Jokers are there at every other ceremony too."  
The Joker grinned.  
„Indeed, Queen Arthur." There was such mockery in his tone. „Proud Queen Arthur didn't want his ceremony to be tainted by us, lowly Jokers, huh?"  
„What...? That's not what I-"  
„Well, do not worry, Your Highness. Soon there will be nothing tainting your Kingdom."  
And then he disappeared in a swirl of dark smoke, leaving behind only stunned silence.  
„Well..." Alfred said, nervously fidgeting. „It can't be that bad..."

It was.  
It was certainly that bad.

„It was you, who was in charge of the invites! It was you who didn't invite them!"  
„Well, we might have gotten of easy, if you had just let me do my goddamned job! But no, you had to stand up and offend the Jokers even more!"  
„Do your damned job?! You fucked up in the first place!"  
The Queen and the Jack were fighting, and no one really knew what to do about it.  
There were teacups shattered on the ground, flowers everywhere that flew out of the vases, while the Ace and the King just watched the back-and-forth between the other two.  
For two hours.  
In the end both of them were just glaring at each other, their normally impeccable manners nonexistant, and that's when Alfred cleared his throat.  
„Guys... we really need to figure out something."  
Yao massaged his temple.  
„We can ask some help from the other Kingdoms, to balance out the crops and animals that are being affected with this... plague. But on one hand, they may be reluctant to help us out, being afraid that they would get cursed too for helping us. On the other hand... even if we have food, we still have the problem of the plague affecting our citizens. The death rates aren't terrible yet... but soon will be."  
Arthur ran his hands through his hair.  
„Maybe we can find that white-haired Joker and try to compensate him?"  
A new voice rang, making all four of them spin into that direction.  
„That wouldn't work."

Roderich, the Jack of Clubs nervously cleared his throat as he walked into the throne room.  
„Please excuse me for sneaking in. But I myself am familiar with the Joker who turned up at the coronation."  
„How so?" Yao asked, raising his eyebrows.  
„For some reason Gilbert – this particular Joker – had taken a liking to our Kingdom, so he usually turns up on our ceremonies. So I had some chance to have a little insight to Joker politics."  
„Aren't you afraid that if you help us, your Kingdom will get cursed too?" Arthur asked, and Roderich just smiled.  
„Oh no, I am not afraid of that. You are correct that I can't give you any concrete help, like even if I could heal the plague, I would not be allowed to. But I can give you some pointers."  
The four Spades exchanged looks before turning back to Roderich.  
„Talk."

„Gilbert is just... a footsoldier, so to speak. He doesn't exactly have a rank or standing. He can represent the Jokers at ceremonies like this, but he's just a spokesperson. He isn't the one really offended here."  
Roderich started pacing the room, hands intertwined behind his back.  
„It's the royal couple whom you have to please. It's them who are offended. Only they can forgive and take back the curse.  
„And how can we contact them?" Yao asked, and Roderich shook his head.  
„I'm sorry. I have no idea. To my knowledge they never leave their Court. I apologise for not being able to help more."  
„Duuuude! Now we know even less than before!"  
Arthur massaged his temple, and just sighed, turning away, trying to shut out Alfred's whining and Roderich apologising even more.

Only chosen two weeks ago.  
Only a Queen for one week.  
And Arthur's Kingdom was already dying.

He walked through the endless corridors of the castle, and looked up to the half moon up at the sky.  
He might as well go down as the worst Queen in history. He should just... back down, find a second one, or bring back Guinevere, and just... invite the whole damned Joker Court to the ceremony.  
Crown a Joker into the Queen of Spades.

All stupid ideas.

„Should have vetoed him."  
Arthur stopped dead on his tracks when he heard Yao's voice.  
That basta...  
„Well, yeah, maybe. But neither of us did. And you know why."

Arthur stepped a few steps closer to the door, eavesdropping.  
Definitely not Queen-like.  
Screw being Queen-like.  
„I did actually like him." Said Yong-Soo, and Arthur heard Yao snort.  
„We all let him become Queen because that's what Gwinny wanted. We couldn't do it to her, that she finally found a suitable candidate, that we throw him back."  
Hearing Alfred's tired words, Arthur felt his stomach drop.

 _Dude. You always had mine._

So that's why he always had Alfred's vote.  
That's why...

He didn't even notice when he started to run away.  
He didn't turn back when he heard the door open.  
He didn't stop when he heard Yong-Soo's voice calling after him.

He had no idea how he found himself back at the temple, standing in the waist-deep water again, this time dressed like a Queen, staring at the altar.  
 _Now I know why did those three chose me. But why was I chosen here?_  
„You were chosen, because you are the best for this job."  
He turned around, and looked at Qu... no. Former Queen Guinevere. Now she was dressed like a simple priestess of the temple, and she stood at the side of the pool.  
„Did I guess right? That's what you were thinking about, right?"  
Arthur turned back to the altar, staring at the carvings at it.  
„The only reason they did not veto me because they wanted to grant you your wish. Otherwise I wouldn't be Queen. And they would be right. Look at me – I fu... messed up everything."  
Guinevere smiled, and also stepped into the water and didn't stop until she was standing right next to Arthur.  
„Queen's have it worst when it comes to worth. We are the only ones who have to prove ourselves after we are crowned. Kings have the whole legal background backing them up as unquestionable. Jacks are elected, and Aces have to be the best at what they do. The only thing we have is our faith, and some magic. I'm pretty sure at one point every Queen goes into their churches, asking – why me?"  
„But not every Queen dooms their entire country on their coronation." Arthur muttered, and Guinevere just smiled.  
„But the Queens... no, the Royals who fall far... are the ones who can climb up." Guinevere extended a hand to Arthur. „Are you willing to do whatever it takes to save your Kingdom?"  
Arthur took her hand.  
Guinevere just helped Arthur step up to the podium.  
„I..."  
„Don't say you don't know what to do. If the Joker Royals won't come to you..."

„...then I will go to the Joker Royals."  
He was standing in Yao's office, looking straight into the Jack's eyes.  
„That's profoundly idiotic." Yao said simply. „No one ever stepped into Joker territory and came back alive. No one."  
„Well, you don't have anything to lose, then." Arthur said simply. „If I succeed, the Kingdom is saved. If not, well, you can find a better Queen."  
Yao just looked at him, eyes wide.  
„You are serious."  
„Yes, I am."  
„It wasn't a question."  
Yao stood up from behind his desk, and walked around it, looking at Arthur like he had never seen him before.  
„I... may have been wrong about you. Queen A-"  
Arthur raised a hand and put it over Yao's mouth.  
„Reserve your judgement until I actually get it done."  
Yao slowly nodded, and when Arthur pulled back his hand, there was just another thing he had to say.  
„Until the full moon. That's how long we can wait."  
„I know."  
He turned around, walking out of the room, but...  
„Queen Arthur!"  
He stopped in the door, and turned back at Yao, seeing the Jack's eyes light up with pride.  
„May you find water to guide you on your travel."  
Arthur felt his throat tighten, but he just nodded.  
„May it be, Jack Yao."

No one went with the Queen, when he went out with his horse.  
People had seen him ride, dark cloak flying behind him, and people whispered about the determined look on his face.  
But the Queen was alone when he got off the horse at the edge of the Dark Forest.  
He was alone when he let go of his horse, gently directing him back home.  
He was alone when he took of his boots, his cape, and walked into the dark forest barefoot.

Arthur could not tell how long was he walking. Sunlight didn't pierce inside, and soon enough he was bleeding from a thousand cuts. He lost his sense of direction, he just walked, never stopped.  
He couldn't stop.  
„Oh hey, look at that. Proud Queen Arthur graces our forest with his presence."  
Arthur wanted to snap at Gilbert, he really did.  
But he just took a deep sigh.  
„Please... Gilbert, that's your name, right?"  
Gilbert tilted his head.  
„Ah, Roderich was a chattermouth wasn't he? Ah, well. Yes, I am."  
Arthur looked straight into the Joker's eyes, and tried to stop thinking about how much he wanted to rip those red eyes out.  
„I need to talk with your Royals. Please take me before them."  
„Eeeeh?" Gilbert tilted his head a little. „No one does that, Queen Arthur. You can't just knock on their door to demand an audience."  
„I think they would like to meet with this one, Gilbert." A new voice echoed in the forest.  
The voice belonged to a frail-looking boy. He was blond, with a bored expression, and a cross-shaped hairpin in his hair.  
He was wearing the light armor that clearly marked him as a Joker Knight.  
(Knights were rarely seen, and often bad omens.)  
(Well, Arthur's life can't be much worse, can it.)  
„Arthur, the Queen of Spades." The Knight looked at him, still uninterested. „I think our King and Queen will grant an audience at you."

Later Arthur would try to describe the Joker Court, but he lacked the words to do so.  
Light and darkness were woven together – it was harmony in chaos personified, and the Jokers, many-many Jokers looking at him with curious expressions as they walked towards the thrones made of thorns.  
And on both thrones there were two blondish-looking men.  
One was tall, with a demanding presence, and glasses – while the other was small, with round face, and innocent eyes.  
And two other Knights on each side of them.  
The Knight who led Arthur inside walked up to the thrones, exchanging a few words with them, before stepping aside. Gilbert had disappeared the second they stepped into the Court.  
„I am Tino. I am the Queen of the Joker Court." The innocent-looking Joker talked first. „You have our permission to state your request, Queen Arthur, of the Spade Court."

And then Arthur Kirkland, Queen of Spades, bruised and battered, full of scars, with bleeding feet, and sore body all over…  
He just fell on his knees in front of the Joker Royals.

„I know I have offended you dearly, Your Majesty." He said, bowing his head. „We neglected to send you an invite to the coronation ceremony, and when you soldier arrived, I rudely dismissed him even. But please, I beg of you, Your Majesty... do not punish my people for it. Take my life, take whatever you need from me – just spare my Kingdom."

It was quiet for a few seconds, no one spoke.  
Arthur didn't dare to look up.  
The first one who spoke wasn't Queen Tino, though.  
„The boy." A deep voice said. Probably the King.  
„Ah. Rise, Queen Arthur. Look at us."  
Arthur did as he was commanded, and looked at the ruling pair.  
„Our King had decided to grant your request. We can spare your Kingdom – for a price. Are you interested?"  
Like he had a choice.  
„State your price, Your Majesty."  
„After you leave this forest, on the third day, when the sun goes down, one of my Knights will be at a meeting point. If you want to have your Kingdom saved, you will bring your younger brother there. If you do not bring the boy there, your Kingdom will perish."

The world started to spin with Arthur, he had no idea how he could open his mouth, how could the words leave his throat, how could he not scream instead, how could he form coherent words..  
„What... will happen to Peter?"  
„He will become one of us." Tino replied simply. „He will no longer be a citizen of your Kingdom, no longer will be able to reach water magic. He will be a Joker, and free to use Joker magic to his will."  
Arthur felt sick, and Tino just smiled.  
„You don't have to answer right now. You have three days. Gilbert will show you the way out, and the meeting point."  
He bowed a little, he might have said a thank you as well… but his thoughts were still spinning.  
A few steps later Arthur stopped, and turned back.  
„Do you promise that he would have a good place here? That you would not hurt him?"  
The King of the Jokers stood up at that, and looked straight into Arthur's eyes – and he never felt this small in his entire life.  
„That is a promise." Came the answer with that deep voice.

Gilbert didn't talk on their way out, and neither did Arthur.  
Not until they could see the edge of the forest, at least.  
„You already made up your mind, didn't you, Queen Arthur?"  
Arthur just pursed his lips, and didn't answer.  
Gilbert just tied a black flag to one of the trees.  
„This tree. This is where one of the Knights will wait for you on the third day. If you want to take up the offer, don't be late. We are quite punctual with out deals, you know."  
„Speaking from experience?"  
Gilbert looked taken aback at that, and Arthur just looked up at him.  
„I knew you looked familiar when I first saw you. But you do resemble the King of Hearts a bit…"  
The next he knew, he flew backwards, and landed a few feet away from the edge of the forest. Every single part of him was in pain, altough he was sure Gilbert didn't touch him. At all.  
And when he looked up, the Joker was nowhere to be seen.

The Queen was back.  
The whispers followed him back on his way. The first village he passed through, he asked for a horse. He made a mental note to remember the farmer's name to send the horse back.  
People had seen the Queen ride back, barefoot, clothes ripped, dried blood on his skin, bruises and dirt everywhere.  
People followed him, and just watched silently as he stormed up the stairs to the throne room.

It was quiet in the library where he managed to drag the other three Royals into.  
He just finished his account, and now they were all looking at him like they had never seen him before.  
„Dude. You had walked into Joker territory, and came out. You know, I'm kind of bummed that the old law of the King and Queen must be married isn't valid anymore, because I would marry the shit out of you."  
„I would be the first one who'd force you to revoke that law." Arthur said in a dry voice. „But this isn't the point now. The point is…"  
He couldn't finish.  
„We can't make that decision for you." Yao said simply. „He is your brother."  
„My brother, or my Kingdom." Arthur said bitterly, shaking his head. „Not much of a competition, is it?"

His Kingdom. His responsibility.

The morning found him at the water again, in front of the altar. He bowed his head, putting his hands to the carvings, eyes closed.  
„Please, forgive me for what I'm about to do. Please, even though he won't be able to reach the water anymore, may there be always water for my younger brother. May he be happy, deep inside the dark forest."

Peter just looked at him, like he couldn't believe what he heard.  
„You… what?!"  
„You need to understand." Arthur was sitting in one of the library chairs, Peter in front of him. „As a Queen, I have responsibilities."  
„Yeah, and it's you who messed up!" Peter shouted, eyes watering up. „Why do I have to be the one who fixes it?! And it was that idiot Jack who messed up first! Why doesn't he have to sacrifice one of his siblings?! And why won't you go, by the way?! I'm not your property! I'm my own person! You can't just… barter me!"  
„This is what they asked for, Peter." Arthur's voice was tired – he hadn't even been a Queen for a month, but it felt like decades on his shoulders. „And either this, or everyone in this Kingdom will die."  
That made Peter stay quiet.  
And he clenched his jaw, and tried to not aknowledge the tears streaking down his face.

On the third day the two of them arrived to the edge of the forest. Peter didn't say a word on their way, and Arthur didn't try to strike up a conversation.  
He tried to help him down from the horse, but Peter jumped down – which made him fall, but he still didn't utter a word.  
„Ouch. It seems like he's mad at you."  
They both looked at the direction of the voice, and the Joker Knight just walked out of the shadows.  
It wasn't the bored-looking one from before – this one was shorter, and had silverish hair, with purple eyes, and Arthur could swear, that when he moved, his shadow had wings for a few seconds.  
And he ignored Arthur, and just walked to Peter, extending a hand to him.  
„I am Emil. I will be your guide."  
And Peter, without another glance wasted at his brother, took the Knight's hand.

„Long live the Queen of Spades! Long live Arthur Kirkland! Long live the Queen who saved our Kingdom!"  
The crowd was celebrating outside, and Arthur was just looking from the library window.  
„It looks like they all forgot real quick, that it was us, who messed up in the first place."  
„You fixed it. That's what it matters."  
Arthur looked back at Alfred, who was rocking on his heels, just like the first time they met after Arthur was chosen.  
„Yeah. And that's what a Queen had to do. I may have failed as a brother, but…"  
„Yeaaaaah. I mean you totally threw your little brother away, and everything."  
„Thanks for the support, Alfred."  
With a sigh, Arthur closed the curtains.  
„Well, um…"  
He turned, and looked at Alfred again, who was scratching the back of his neck nervously.  
„Do you… want to play chess, maybe? Or I don't know. Something."  
Arthur just turned away.

 _Dude. You always had mine._

„Maybe sometime later, Alfred."

* * *

 **Notes:** I was seriously mad at myself while writing this. I mean, come on. I was like "every Cardverse story focuses on the Spades", and what do I do? More Spades. Amazing.

Next story will be about Diamonds, though, probably.

Yes, the Nordics are all Jokers. And in this AU, the Jokers are like the faeries in our myths. Sort of. Kinda. (Yes, eventually I do plan on writing how did Gilbert beame a Joker. And how does he know Roderich.)


End file.
